A Smashing Voyage
by SamanthaKasa
Summary: A story mostly about Hartley Rathaway. Heavily featuring the Flash & Co., conversations between Barry and Caitlin, long chats between Caitlin and Hartley, and Caitlin's discussion with Cisco about Hartley. Not necessarily a [SnowBarry] fic, but NOT NECESSARILY "NOT", if you get what I mean. Story may evolve depends on what direction the show is going.
1. 1 A Weird & Dysfunctional Family Dynamic

**Abbreviated A/N:**  
This is a story/scene mostly about Hartley Rathaway. I mean, he has only appeared in one episode when I wrote this, so yes, I myself might end up hating the character later, but as of now, basing on this one episode, I find him intriguing, so this is my take.

**Warning 1:**  
This piece contains utter silliness and ridiculousness, conversation-wise. You have been warned. The TV series is relatively young, so it is a bit hard to say what exactly is OOC and what is acceptable; if there are any OOC moments, I did try to acknowledge them within the piece. This is fanfic, if I seriously offended anyone with it, I'm kind of sorry, but I'm kind of not, please don't expect me to give some full hearted apologies if/when someone decided to leave unfriendly and nonconstructive comments.

**Warning 2:**  
There is a great portion of the latter half of the piece touching on the topic referencing _**another**_ fandom; I did not come up with the reference, it was slightly mentioned in the show, and it was confirmed in multiple interviews. As I happened to be a big fan of the said reference, I elaborated, maybe a slightly bit too much, but I had fun. If it annoys you or bores you, that, I am sorry.

**Warning 3:**  
I'm not gonna lie, at the very end of the piece, I shameless threw in bashing about a certain song, I personally find overrated. I couldn't help it. Yup, it's a popular song so I'm possibly offending tons of people, but owells... Please don't get too work up and hurt yourself. I did warn you.

* * *

It was late in the evenings and it had been a long day; seeing Caitlin once again preparing fresh bandages (and some medical equipment... just in case, Barry deducted), along with the minimum nutrition one needed to consume, watching her getting ready to _revisit_ the Pipeline to check on the self-proclaimed Pied Piper, Barry couldn't help blurting out, "Can I ask you a question? Another one of those... you absolutely don't have to answer if you don't want to?"

Caitlin didn't stop her preparation, didn't even bother looking up, but replied with the tone that one could easily imagine her saying it with her eyes rolling. "You really need to come up with a better way of phrasing it, especially when you already know I hate those kind of questions. Now, shoot."

"Okay... So what's the deal with Hartley?" Barry felt stupid, maybe she was right, he should have just asked this instead of asking the redundant _'can I ask you a question'_ question. Perhaps he was trying to create the illusion that she could choose _not_ to answer, knowing pretty well that once he asked, she was most likely going to reply.

This time Caitlin did stop what she was doing.

"I'm afraid you have to be more specific."

"Right. So... I can tell Cisco actually, like genuinely, really does not have any good feelings about Hartley;"

"That's putting it mildly, yes." Now that Caitlin was facing him, Barry saw the eye-rolling this time.

"Okay, fine. Cisco really thinks Hartley's a dick. But what about you?" At first, Barry thought Caitlin had the same bitterness as Cisco, as if Caitlin's description of the disowned Rathaway was in fact toned-down... But since when did Caitlin sugarcoat anything? Not ever.

"What _about_ me?" Putting emphasis in the sentence, Caitlin was starting to show signs of impatience, and _this_ made Barry impatient, because, well, why wasn't she giving a straight (no pun intended) answer? Was his question really that hard to grasp? Caitlin was a master of holding a poker face, and right now, Barry was really having problems with telling whether she was actually getting annoyed or simply playing dumb.

"Like, why are you doing this?" Barry stretched out both of his arms to point out the tray Caitlin was setting up for Hartley.

"Because I am a doctor?" Okay, this time Barry could tell Caitlin was indeed offended.

"Yes, I know you are! I mean! That's not the point..." Barry ruffled his hair frustratedly, he felt so inadequate of voicing his questions sometimes.

"Pray tell, what exactly is the point? Because this conversation is delaying a visit, one I would like to get over with as soon as possible!"

"Exactly! If you don't like to go down there, why bother at all?"

"And what? Let Hartley _die_ down there because of multiple possible wound infections? Do you think I'm _that_ unprofessional to let personal feelings get in the way?" Okay, Barry had eyes and a brain and he could definitely tell Caitlin was fuming at the moment.

"No...! I mean, why not let Dr. Wells or Cisco, or even, well, like, me do the job?"

"Honestly...! You said so yourself, it's not hard to see that Cisco and Hartley don't get along, and I've seen it so many times how Hartley taunted him; if I can spare my friend this unhappy experience, why not? And it's not like medical is Cisco's forte to begin with! As for Dr. Wells, which part of the whole revenge thing did you not get? They might have been close before, but not anymore."

"... And myself?" Barry asked, weakly.

Dr. Caitlin Snow really had it in her to make Barry feel dimwitted.

"... How is the Flash going to make this easier, hmmm? In case you've forgotten, he did try to kill you." And with that, Caitlin went back to preparation.

"... I just don't understand why you're so calm about it."

"Seriously, it's not a big deal. _I_ don't understand why _you_ are getting so worked up about it."

"Oh, I don't know, because I don't understand how you are tolerating this? Because from what I gathered, you and Hartley aren't even friends? I don't get why you let it go so easily when he effortlessly hurt you like that."

Caitlin looked confused.

"He mocked you with the comment about Ronnie." With that, Caitlin's expression hardened, with a little disbelief, and then looked away.

"Ronnie is a weakness of mine; in a way, I think he always will be... but it wasn't the first time someone try to use it against me." Caitlin said quietly, but firmly.

"... wha...?" Seeing Caitlin's lack of eye contact, the realization hit Barry full on.

_**'Caitlin, I'm not Ronnie, you gotta stop treating me like I am.'**_

Barry held his head low... That sentence was one of those things that... if Barry could time travel, he would gladly go wipe away its existence. He didn't like how this memory was brought up though... Didn't they talk it over... WAIT, _did_ they talk it over!? Barry tried very hard, his brain searching with super speed of a certain memory that could not be found... because it didn't exist. All he found in his racing mind, was him apologizing to Oliver on occasions more than once, but never for his actions toward Caitlin. Caitlin had called him to _flash_ over to Starling City to aid team Arrow after the incident in Central City, and... it was like everything was fine, like nothing had ever occurred to break their team relationship, except that something _had_, but was just carefully ignored.

"... Look, Caitlin, I'm..." But Barry was cut off when he was finally trying to appropriately apologize.

"But this is about Hartley." Caitlin put the tray aside, sat down, regaining eye contact, and indicated Barry to sit down as well, so he complied. "No, Hartley and I aren't friends; to be honest, I'm not even sure if he has _any_ friends. Just a side-note, it'll actually hurt more when the awful things came from someone the recipient cares about."

Great, if Barry felt bad a few seconds ago, he felt completely horrible at the moment.

"But, that doesn't mean Hartley's words were totally affectless. It still hurt, I assure you, but it didn't break me, alright?"

Barry was still not getting it.

"Look, Hartley is just Hartley, he is unpleasantly blunt, but he is not evil."

Dr. Caitlin Snow would have to do a better job convincing Barry the statement.

"He's not. Really. He's not." Caitlin said it with the eye-roll again, and Barry hated it so much for a millisecond.

"Hartley is... Just different from you." Caitlin's expression was like explaining something simple to a first grader, with patience and frustrations.

Well, duh! Obviously they were different! While Barry tried to become a superhero, Hartley turned out to be some supervillain! And Barry was not gay, no offense. The two could not be more different, it didn't take a genius to figure that out!

Luckily, seeing the grumpy expression on his face, in order to prevent Barry from thinking too hard and popping a vein, Caitlin continued, "Okay, for example, when we first had an actual conversation; you said you noticed I don't smile a lot, but that was putting it very politely." She went on and ignored Barry when he looked like he was about to protest, "If it were Hartley, he'd probably say something like _'I was just wondering why this old hag always has this look as if her breakfast tasted like crap, and like, everyday.'_ Well, actually, no; knowing Hartley, he is most likely to come up with something more elegant, but a hundred-times more insulting. But you get the idea."

No, Barry really didn't get the idea.

"Oh, come on. What I'm trying to say is, while both of you might have had the same thoughts, Hartley just says it out loud without filtering."

Woah, now wait a minute! 'Old hag'? Caitlin might have been a few years older than him, but Barry certainly did not see her like that! Okay... the comment on her facial expression... the breakfast/crap analogy was pretty amusing... but... and ... and ... well, she smiled a lot more now!

"Relax. It really isn't a big deal. Do you at least kind of understand now? In a way, Hartley is helplessly honest, that's a fact. He sees something he disapproves, he will not be shy of voicing it, that's how he rubs the wrong way with Cisco. If you were in that particular situation, I think it's a safe bet to say that you are just too kind to be rude. Even if you might have also had the same initial question on whether or not you could or should take Cisco seriously, because let's be honest, he really can be annoying with the puns and quotes sometimes; even if you did have doubts, you would have kept it all to yourself and not say anything about it." Caitlin said with a knowing quirk of a smile.

No comment. Barry was not going to comment on whatever was just said.

"So yeah... Hartley is... just Hartley, and trust me because I knew him longer than Cisco knew him; I knew him before Ronnie and were even an item. Hartley's not evil, he's just brutally blunt. So does that answer your question?"

Barry decided to be satisfied. For now. There was something about how Caitlin used 'knew' instead of the present tense 'know' that sort of brought more questions, but he would save it for later.

"I'll tag along, just in case?" He was answered with a stare.

"Just for precaution, you know!" He added weakly.

"You worry too much." Caitlin shook her head and said it with some fondness, took the tray and headed out, "If you have nothing else to do, you can look at the live surveillance footage."

"Fine. I'll do just that." Barry muttered.

* * *

She first injected the nutrition (Cisco and herself calculated) into Hartley, then went on checking his bandaged hands. It wasn't like they were purposely mistreating him; it was that, knowing Hartley, even if they did manage to provide food served in some five-star hotels, he would probably still find faults with it; as Cisco described, Hartley could really be a dick sometimes, so they decided to save themselves the trouble. Caitlin then examined the wounds in his ears, covering them with some salve in case they started itching. The whole process was done in silence, and Caitlin was fine with that, but she was aware that just as she was examining the wounds, the Piper was examining her, and it was starting to unnerve her.

"What?" She asked quietly. Because she was nice like that.

Hartley tilted his head a little, and gave the grin of his that sometimes just seemed 'off', and said, "Can I also ask you a question? One of those... you absolutely don't have to answer if you don't want to?"

"Ha, Ha, very funny." This time she didn't bother lowering her voice for the sake of his eardrums.

"Tell me, do you still dislike emotions?"

The question seemed genuine, and it took Caitlin by surprise, so she let herself ponder a bit.

"I can hear _everything_ in this building, and somethings outside this place, too; so obviously, I heard your little talk with Harrison's pet-project. I find it amusing that you would jump into my defense."

"And what? Do you finally feel some gratitude for once? For the record, I was not defending you; the Flash asked me a question, I was just answering."

"But still, there was a time you would have just kept the answer short. For the record, if you are expecting a 'thank you' from me, you need to get your brain checked. Disturbed was more like what I am feeling." Hartley had this irksome way of using the same sentence structure but with contents that somehow effectively pissed people off.

"And your point is?" Caitlin did not hide how bored of the conversation she sounded.

"You know, there was a time when I actually thought you were kind of cool; you were this clever bioengineer with a brilliant mind, yet you were so detached with people, like some sort of Ice Queen; you were just like me."

Caitlin tried very hard to not roll her eyes while replaying the sentence in her head that had the content of _'Ice Queen'_ and _'like himself'_ in it. She had no idea if there was any subtext in it or if she should take it seriously.

"Enlighten me then, because I certainly wasn't aware that Your Royal Highness was able to see someone in positive light other than himself, and perhaps Dr. Wells, once upon a time." Caitlin wasn't trying to be deliberately mean, she just found Hartley's statement preposterous.

"I _did_ think you were cool, but you changed. Disappointment is an understatement." His stare turned cold.

Caitlin arced one of her eyebrows and was still in a bored expression.

"Ronnie Raymond." Hartley gritted out the name with distaste.

* * *

Barry was watching the whole exchange from the lab; some parts of the conversation were in French, but fortunate for him, some parts weren't, so he was able to mostly piece them together, and there was also the fact that Ronnie's name was in English. Thinking that the Pied Piper had once again brought up the taboo subject, Barry had the mind to rush over and set him straight (again, no pun intended) just as he saw the biggest eye-roll of the century.

"Really, Caitlin? Falling for a guy who joked about being a high-priced plumber? Spewing out cliches like fire and ice? It was so pathetic..."

"_Puh-leeze_, Hartley, you can cut the crap now. You know why? Because you weren't being exactly subtle when you _eye-ravaged_ (right, Caitlin couldn't believe she was still being very ladylike in this circumstance) him all the time back in the days! Admit it, you thought Ronnie was cute, no wait, I bet you thought he was _super hot_." Caitlin folded her arms with a satisfactory smile. Even _she_ thought it was utterly stupid to feel victory over this silly conversation, but then again.

_THAT_ shut Hartley up.

He had this angry bulldog face, that if vocalizing the facial expression, one could hear a reluctant _'fine'_ that sounded like coming from a whiny kid.

Barry had his hands covering his mouth and tried very hard to not laugh out loud (though he wasn't exactly sure why he was restraining himself, he was alone in the room after all.) Then he remembered the Piper had some crazy super hearing; it was probably best to not embarrassed the fella furthermore.

The Flash finally figured out what the weird dynamic he was seeing when he saw Caitlin patching up Hartley; he would wager that it looked almost precisely like that when Dr. Not-So-Happy-Snow was fixing himself up: a big sister fussing over her younger brother, and the younger brother sitting terribly still, not so eager to get more scolding. What was more ridiculous, was that the younger brother got jealous and just threw a tantrum because the sister got to be with the guy he sort of had his eyes on. Talking about cliche, if this were a chick flick... Okay, Barry was no longer sure if he was analyzing the situation correctly, because it all just sounded really laughable in his head. Lucky for him, Caitlin continued to talk so he stopped thinking and just listened.

* * *

"And you know what? You want to talk about changing? What the heck were _you_ doing when you decided to dress like a deranged emo-and-evil-looking Harry Potter? _There was a time_ you were flamboyant as shit (excuse her, Caitlin didn't like herself swearing as well), wearing eye-glasses that were slightly green shades, having strawberry-blond hair long enough to tie a tiny ponytail... You were always a bit egocentric, but at least you had some warmth; now you suddenly decided to go all melodramatic monotone oh-you-wronged-me-I-shall-take-my-revenge? _That_, Hartley, is a big change. I'm not even sure why we are having this conversation." Caitlin decided that what-the-hell, her semi-outburst was a bit uncharacteristic, but this whole conversation was basically surreal, so she figured she would just let a piece of her mind be heard.

Hartley had the decency to _blush_ slightly.

"First of all, I'm glad someone in this group picked up the reference." He recovered considerably quickly.

"Believe me, you were being fairly obvious, Hartley." Caitlin could not resist giving yet another eye-roll.

"Believe it or not, I did that partly to _humor_ Cisco, since he was so sour with _'the Chosen One'_ comment; honestly, it was a one-time thing, _and even that time I meant it as a sarcastic joke!_ How was I to know that he was so touchy?"

Caitlin just raised her eyebrows. She felt that Hartley might have actually believed in what he was saying, but she doubted that to humor Cisco was mainly the reason he made it sound like. To be honest, Caitlin wasn't sure Hartley knew what humor was until hearing this particular confession.

"And let me remind you, _dear Caitlin_, I went monotone quite long ago, before I even met Cisco. It wasn't a sudden change at all."

This was also true.

They sat in silence and stared at each other for approximately three minutes.

"Oh, bother (see, Caitlin really wasn't comfortable at swearing)," She felt... She didn't know what she felt, but that this was a question asked three years too late, "What happened?" Caitlin didn't like to feel like a cold-hearted bitch, honestly who would want to feel like one? But this was a question that made her feel exactly that way, and she knew Hartley knew as well.

"What did you think happened?" Hartley asked the rhetorical question so sweetly.

"I always say what I feel, how I feel. This was the only thing I bottled up for so long, and it was something I shouldn't even be ashamed of admitting." Hartley looked at Caitlin harshly, daring her to say otherwise, but he knew he wouldn't be told off... She had never held his sexual orientation against him. In fact, she was possibly one of the only few people who remained unfazed and cool when the whole scandalous disownment happened. Her expression said it all: she felt the Rathaways were outdated with their view and responded too dramatically with poor taste, but what did her opinion matter? It wasn't her family. It wasn't really her say.

"After the whole thing, I tried being... something that would creep them out _less_? As you can see, it didn't really help."

"Now that we've established that it did not work well (or at all), you mind sharing why you choose to keep this look?" Great, Caitlin seriously did not want to participate in this conversation... It made her feel bad for _not_ feeling _too_ bad to do something about it a few years ago. But then again, seeing Hartley obviously still feeling distress about it, she decided _she_ would humor him and be a good listener (one that talked back occasionally).

Dr. Caitlin Snow wasn't a psychiatrist, but she could picture perfectly that were Cisco to be here in her place, it would absolutely not help the situation, same for Dr. Wells and the Flash (because they couldn't risk Barry's secret identity, right? Though she feared with Hartley's ears being so sensitive... he might have already figured it out... owells.)... As weird as it might sound... Caitlin was almost positive that out of the four candidates, she was the one Hartley had the least reason to be furious with, and she still stood by her statement, he wasn't evil, he was just currently unhappy. _Okay, scratch that._ He had just been pissed off for quite some time without a proper outlet. Considering the other option being letting him talk to himself like some crazy person, Caitlin really didn't see the harm of hearing him out, so listen she shall.

"Glad we are moving on and dropping the depressing family affair. FYI, this is my natural hair color. Didn't feel like being a blond anymore."

"And green happens to not be your favorite color anymore as well? Before you act all defensive, yes, I did notice your gadgets have glows of green, but from what I know of you, you were always very loud and clear with your statements... Tiptoeing with subtleties was... unsettling... for me, at least. If anything, I would have imagined you with a green cape or something equally outlandish... Your wardrobe choice... Were you going for _'Harry Potter merging with a Horcrux and was sent into a Sci-Fi world'_? Because it was confusing." Caitlin was channeling her inner 'Hartley-bluntness'; it was one of those attitudes she realized just easier when interacting with certain people... _Act like them, and you won't be bothered by how they act..._ She hadn't treated people like this since, well, Hartley left; to be honest, it was kind of refreshing to be... well, super-duper blunt. She didn't really care that she was letting her geeky-ness in a certain modern literature show... What the team encountered so far all happened to be what Cisco could take to the next level of dorkiness, Hartley gave her the perfect opportunity to, well, let the world (basically just him, and possibly Barry listening from the lab) know that Dr. Caitlin Snow was _not_ a boring woman. _Okay_, she was definitely _tired_, even her inner thoughts sounded dense to herself. Great.

"No, Caitlin, green is still my favorite color. While some may associate the color with envious... It is the color of will. But... I guess I just don't want to let my actions being wrongfully deducted as associating with someone else."

"... Feel free to elaborate."

"... You do realize Starling City has a vigilante wearing a green hood?"

"... Unless you decided next time you get out, which is not happening anytime soon, switching your weapons and started attacking us with green arrows; I'm pretty sure no one is going to confuse you with the said vigilante."

They stared at each other for approximately two minutes.

* * *

"Fine, it was surprisingly a considerable move, but I'm not totally buying it; you want to be distinguishing, that I get, but the rest? It was so random. You don't want to been as the Arrow or his copycat, so you settled for mimicking Potter? It doesn't make sense." Caitlin decided she would stop caring how idiotic this conversation sounded.

"Really, Caitlin, you didn't think that I was also trying to mock you guys with this look? You're a smart girl, figure it out. Action speaks louder than words: the entire fight was like a chess game. Here's another one, _for the greater good_, rings a bell?" And Hartley actually looked like he was enjoying the talk.

Of course she understood what he was trying very hard to not shout out loud, but she could't help protesting a little, "If you did read the books, Hartley, you will find myself more of a Ravenclaw, and Cisco..."

"Yes, yes, Cisco has the loyalty equivalent of an adorable Hufflepuff; but you can't deny _the scarlet knight_ is exactly like the boy wonder, red and gold, _excuse me_, yellow, and all; blindly following someone with a pair of sparkling blue eyes behind his _half-moon spectacles_, oh, wait, my bad, I meant _glasses_;" Right, Barry's outfit just so happened to be sharing the similar color with a certain House of a certain novel, what a great coincidence. Caitlin didn't bother mentioning that the Flash didn't pick the color palette, Cisco did, and it was meant for firefighters! Sometimes little things could really be read in a totally different way.

"You are all fools, especially the Flash, trusting someone who could cut him loose in a heartbeat... Look how easily he did it to me, Caitlin; next thing you know, you, Cisco, the Flash... You're all going to end up just like me, pieces to be sacrificed for the bigger picture."

"Look, I get that you are angry with Dr. Wells for not listening to you, for shunning you; Hartley, we all get it."

"Yet, you are willing to forgive him. Guess your love for Ronnie wasn't that deep after all..." He winced, because he was just grabbed tightly by his injured hands.

"Now, Hartley, you listen to me carefully... _Do not_ dare entertaining the idea that what you just said was possible, _ever_, again. I may have been chill with a lot of things, but _do not_ insult my feelings for my fiancé. Just so you know, I am not sure that I have forgave Dr. Wells just yet. In a way, I really have to thank you for coming forward to show us his flaw we were not seeing, or unwilling to see."

"You say those pretty words, but you are still in this merry little band on a quest of unknown, a fool's errand."

"There is no ulterior motive for what we are doing, at least not for me. I'm not doing this for Dr. Wells, I'm on this team because... Oh, why don't you get it? We are just trying to make the best out of it! The particle accelerator exploded and it literally ruined my life for a while; I'm not going to lie, I'm still upset, but unlike you, I don't dwell on it! Because unless you figure out a way to time travel, say, you actually whip up a Time-Turner; in case you fail to get the memo, what happened a year ago cannot be undone simply because you are hating the entire world! It's just not healthy, Hartley; I know this is going to sound totally weird, but you should really consider letting some of that anguish go."

"Caitlin, if I start hearing _'Let It Go'_ in this building, I swear I will find a way of making myself going complete _deaf_. You have no idea how much I have to endure since the accelerator's mockup. That song is being played literally everywhere, you would think after a year the trend would die down a bit." _Okay, it is now officially proven, miracles do exist._ Hartley Rathaway turned out to have a sense of humor. Caitlin was tired, and what had just been said ways just too funny, she giggled.

"It is not funny."

"Nuh-uh, it so is. You know what? As stimulating our chat is, I'm really worn out, I'm going to take my leave now." And Caitlin was being honest, their talk did give her some new insight, therefore, stimulating.

Hartley studied her closely, and concluded, "I told you, you changed." Caitlin did not bother to reply, she just waved her hand for him to go on.

"There was a time, that _there was no way_ you would sit here and have this not-so-short talk with anyone, probably not even with Ronnie. Why are you doing this?"

"I guess the scientist in me just want to figure you out."

"What is there to figure out?" Caitlin waved again, but this time the gesture had more of a _'you tell me'_ feel to it.

After a brief pause, feeling really drained, Caitlin answered it herself.

"Why now? The fiasco happened over a year ago. Your changes, the pain it caused you, happened over a year ago, yet you didn't show yourself until now. You are practically a genius, I don't believe it took you this long to build your weapons. If it was about your recent discovery of the Flash, I can only ask again, why? Taking it out on him helps your revenge on Dr. Wells, how? Are you insinuating Cisco and I aren't important enough to crush your former mentor? What gave you the idea? I may not have been your biggest fan, but I've always seen you as a logical person... Right now, what your action could ultimately accomplish, I still haven't figure out. Killing the Flash, upsetting Dr. Wells, and then what? Would you be satisfied?"

"Did it not occur to you you were overthinking? How about I did it, because I can?"

"Is that how it was?" This time it was Hartley's turn to shrug. Caitlin gathered the stuff she brought in, stood up and prepared to leave.

"Have you figured it out?"

"No, not yet. I'm too exhausted right now."

"Guess only time will tell then."

"Guess so."

Before she was out of the makeshift cell, Hartley hummed, "It was a pleasure talking to you, Caitlin."

"It was a pleasure finally actually getting to know you, if only a little bit, Hartley." And she meant it. She wasn't so self-centered to think that Hartley ended up like this because she didn't spare time listening to him back then. No, they weren't friends, and she had enough to worry about with her life back in the day. But now... She realized, in her life, the people she interacted with were reduced to less than twenty, it really didn't hurt to care a little bit more.

* * *

"That went well." Barry spoke with amusement as Caitlin returned to the lab to put stuff back in order.

"Oh, you're still here? And, yes, I did tell you Hartley wasn't evil."

"That you did; I just had to see so myself." He flashed all the equipments back to where they belonged. "You want me to drop you back to your place? No offense, you really look like you can use some rest."

Caitlin just nodded, and in a flash, she was in her flat. Barry snuck a quick kiss on her forehead, "Night, Caitlin, rest well, 'kay?"

"Mhmmm. Sweet dreams, Barry." Her flat wasn't exactly next to S.T.A.R. Labs, only till now that she felt was perhaps safer to say his name, she gave his hand a little squeeze, and head off to bed.

On his way flashing back home to Joe's, although the journey only took a few seconds, he replayed what he saw in his brain; he decided he would give Hartley a try, and not label him as a psycho lunatic. Maybe Barry would get to see more of this weird dysfunctional family dynamic. Only time would tell.

_**FIN?**_


	2. 2 An Upsetting yet Uplifting Realization

**Last Edited On:** 15/02/19 (Currently still under changes, but feel free to read! xoxo)

**Abbreviated A/N:**

I honestly didn't think I would be busting out another chapter (this soon anyways), but 1x12 kinda really annoyed me (don't get me wrong, I still liked the episode, but there were just moments that made me go wtf), and most importantly, it kinda made what I wrote last chapter slightly contradicting what was shown on the show; if you know anything about me, you'd know I hate contradicting canon (the show), but luckily, judging from both 1x13 and 1x14, Caitlin's reaction in 1x12 seemed salvageable, which is why I decided to write down my take on what was going on. Also, I might do an Extended A/N in a NON-actual-chapter "Chapter", like I did with two other stories. I know most likely nobody reads that sh*t, but there's just too much to talk about, so.

**Warning (of sorts):**

I also didn't see the piece getting archived in a [SnowBarry] community; it was a honor and a pleasant surprise, BUT! (That's a big BUT so be ready.) As much as I personally ship them, in _this_ chapter, it is not happening. There's a big chance that this chapter would upset the [SnowBarry] fans. And if you are all for [FireFrost] (call it SnowStorm all you want, I think _FireFrost is much hotter/cooler_ so I'm promoting it even if nobody other than myself uses it) , then I guess good for you? What I'm trying to say is, I don't mind reading people writing about them at this point, but for me, doing so in this specific piece, it will really shatter my image of both Barry and Caitlin. So yeah, it's not happening right now as long as I'm in charge of this fic, and I am. If you want promises... All I can say is... Right now we are at season 1... I'll probably make it happen like season 4 or 5.

* * *

Dr. Caitlin Snow felt bad. She _rarely_ felt bad.

In some sense she understood why Hartley thought she was 'cool': she really did have a high tolerance with facing situations; she might have had a stuck-up attitude, but she'd actually gotten along with all of her co-workers back then... If breaking it down and analyzing it, the truth was, most of the time she was mainly indifferent about what was happening around her or to her; that, or just being really calm and mature about what was given, adapting, and simply going with the flow. In her opinion, there really was no use crying over spilt milk. Unless it was an on-going situation where voicing suggestions might have changed the tide, feeling sorry for oneself or getting angry at the circumstances would not do much help. Life was precious and short; she didn't want to waste time on feeling bad, therefore, she rarely did.

She wasn't lying when she told Barry that... Before being in a relationship with Ronnie, her life was just routines _of _routines; 'predictable' was really a very polite way of saying 'hella boring.' It was very hard to have highs and lows when pretty much all she did was the same things everyday, and the fact was she was _fine with that_... Then Ronnie came into her life. Needless to say, he became the brightest highlights of her days _and_ nights, which was why his supposed 'death' was the only time she truly felt devastated... Like she had forever lost the shine of happiness. Like her life had gone back to the time where there were no ups and downs. Like dead water. Like a considerably smooth surface of a frozen lake. Like the pain and agony of the loss had numbed her so much to feel anything else, good or bad.

Like she was alive but she wasn't living. But hey, she could adapt, right?

What came close to the said devastation, was _then_ finding out her fiancé was actually quite alive, yet changed and wanted nothing to do with her. She had tried to play it cool over the past weeks or so, trying not to think about it, but it was really starting to get to her as of late... Barry's injuries (more like his adorable actions of foolishness that caused them) had gotten her worried, frustrated, and scared (a lot; like a lot, lot, lot), but she hadn't felt _bad_; she'd gotten used to it and learned to dealt with it. Ronnie? Oh, she really didn't want to think about him at the moment.

So why was Caitlin feeling bad? Because she let what was getting to her reflected on her behavior, and Cisco... _God knows_, even _Hartley_ didn't deserve it. Her friend was just trying to help, he even came clean about what he learned from the Piper... And what did she do? She told him to stop trying; she made the young Rathaway's claim out as some sort of nonsense. She lied right in her friend's face, one that he easily saw through, and like the good friend he was, he gave some honest comments about it in return. She didn't want to think about _that_ right now, either.

Caitlin pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. What was worse, was that she now had to go do the daily check up with Hartley, who most probably heard how she had ridiculed him minutes ago. Just great.

* * *

The process started out very similar to her usual visits, only that after a few seconds, Hartley opened his mouth and scoffed "Here I thought we were bonding a little... What was it you said? Hartley Rathaway, who was going psycho with sound waves."

Caitlin had her eyes downcast. To be honest, that remark really _was_ mean, and she admitted it wholeheartedly.

"Caitlin, maybe this time _you_ could enlighten _me_; why are you still here?"

She just looked at him dumbly and took a breath, thinking that he was questioning Team Flash's agenda again, "I told you last time: we are just trying to do good! The damage the particle accelerator, _our_ particle accelerator turned some people into metahumans! And some of them _aren't_ very nice! If I can help this team, I will, and that's why I am."

"Yet, when you learned that the fiancé you claimed to love so deeply also happened to be one of those turned metahuman, _and_ you now know it from Cisco that _I_ know what really happened _to_ him, and where to find him; you still chose to do nothing. You did not answer my question, why are you _still_ here? Why aren't you pouring down hundreds of questions on me already?"

With that, Caitlin could only just stare at her former co-worker. Hartley really was smart; he had easily pinpointed the inconsistency in her reply.

_That_ gave Hartley the cue to continue.

"You were cool, but you weren't _cold_. Right now I'm seeing a whole new level of unfazed... and if you want to know what is unsettling, _that_ is. How can you not wonder about what happened to him? How does it not _kill_ you to not know? You were so in love... Unless..." Hartley eyes shot straight at Caitlin's _bare_ left hand... The ring he remembered seeing, the one _blinding_ him once upon a time (... before his position at S.T.A.R. Labs was terminated) was now nowhere to be seen. _Come to think of it_, he didn't remember seeing it at all after he was first captured and then recaptured again. _That_ was even more alarming than the calm demeanor in front of him...

The young Rathaway might not have been close to Caitlin or Ronnie, but he understood what love _is_; make no mistake, he himself had been quite adored by his parents, well, up until he _came out_; nonetheless, the point was he did understand, and even though he had taunted her (well, he was Hartley Rathaway, he taunted EVERYBODY), he knew if any two people deserved each other, it was them. They were crazily in love, and as much as he _hated_ to acknowledge, the pair really looked stupidly cute together... What he was processing agitated him, so he figured he would just give a piece of his mind, which came out quite hostilely, more so he meant it to be "Okay, so what is _your_ deal with the Flash!?"

"... What?" Caitlin was not prepared for the turn of the conversation; she thought they were talking about Ronnie? Now she was genuinely confused. "What _about_ the Flash?" Those types of conversations seemed to be happening a lot lately.

"One of the reasons I knew the Flash was working with you guys, was indeed like what I told Harrison: I did some calculations and found out he was always heading to the labs after incidents. _But_, I also got eyes and they _are_ working just fine (unlike his ears that previously needed hearing aids)! Like, I'm sure most if not all, the citizens in Central City that day, I _saw _a woman being kidnapped by two armed men to _lure out_ the Flash, and I happened to recognize the woman held on screen was my former longtime co-worker, you! Is he the reason you are _abandoning_ your old lover!?" _God help him_, if so, he'd have another great reason to loathe the Flash! Family-wrecker! (Hartley had no idea how insane he sounded in his mind... Technically, what was between Ronnie and Caitlin was not set in stone yet. But he chose to ignore the fact.)

"Don't be absurd! I am not abandoning Ronnie! And the Flash is just a friend!"

"You have a funny way of showing it!"

"I don't have to explain myself to you!"

"No, you don't; but I can go on wondering why you aren't doing _what seems more logical_ all I want. Why aren't you bombarding me with questions?"

"Because I don't trust you." It was harsh, but it was the truth. One of the truths, at least. Caitlin took a deep breath, "You are right, we are getting to know each other, at least more so than we did back when we actually worked together; but this _bonding-process_, it takes time, Hartley."

Hartley just stared at her. If he had to admit to himself, he felt a little hurt by that statement... Had it been Cisco here having this talk, Hartley would not delude himself, _of course_ there would be no trust between both men _(and amusingly, just as he predicted, when the situation did happen eventually, Cisco almost said the exact words that just came out of Caitlin's mouth.)_ But Caitlin? Pied Piper could never picture her acting like this; she was always the most rational... What did she have to loose to simply ask questions?

"If you think I would lie about this, subject me to a polygraph; I'm sure you guys got connections with the CCPD."

Caitlin remained silent, averting her eyes. That was when it hit Hartley.

"But that's not really the problem, is it! I am right here, and if it's not about trust issues, what's stopping you from getting answers?"

"BECAUSE I DON'T _WANT_ TO!" She bellowed. Dr. Caitlin Snow lost it.

The Piper was taken aback, he leaned backwards a little, sitting up straight, watching the all-time-cool-and-calm Dr. Snow trying to regain her _cool and calm_.

"There are a few things, Hartley. No, I don't think you'd have a reason to lie about Ronnie; you were unpleasant, but you weren't _cruel_ to play a prank on a subject like that. However, like I told you before, I'm still trying to figure you out."

Hartley arched one of his eyebrows to indicate her to continue.

"I still _haven't_ figured you out. What is your _endgame_? How would giving out information about Ronnie help to achieve your goal? In short, _why_ would you even want to help us on finding out about what really happened to Ronnie? Is this something for a bigger picture?"

Hartley again just stared at her; Dr. Snow made some fair points, but he wasn't stupid, there was most definitely more than that. It simply did not add up to him.

"And why does it matter, why I do this and why I do that? If anything, I imagine you a person to get down to it for your loved ones, just as _he_ undoubtedly would you. So I'll ask again, what's stopping you from getting answers?" Hartley Rathaway meant every single word he just spoke. He couldn't understand why a person that was only ever so feisty about the ones she cared would not take actions.

"I told you, because _I_ don't want to." She did vaguely answer him. It wasn't _'what'_ that was stopping her; _'she'_ was stopping herself from getting explanations and solutions.

"Humor me then, why (the hell) not?"

Caitlin had her now-bare-left-hand rubbing her forehead, breathing in and out, trying very hard to maintain her posture, whatever that was left of it. She didn't want to have a breakdown again, like the one she had had in front of Cisco, right before Christmas; how much, how terrifyingly much, would she give, to _not_ ever finding out what had really happened to Ronnie, of what had become of him.

"It's silly, really; I don't know why I'm telling you this..." She tried to put humor in her voice, but it wasn't working, "It's... like Pandora's box..."

She now had her left hand covering her mouth, and Hartley saw her eyes reddening... So Dr. Caitlin Snow WASN'T as unaffected as she pretended to be after all. In fact, from the looks of it, the issue had been eating her up from the inside for quite some time.

Caitlin didn't want to spend another second, another _millisecond_ thinking about the 'what if's... It was undoing her, and she was barely keeping herself together.

"... I don't want to open the box." It was selfish of her, she knew.

"Except, _dear Caitlin_, you already had." And he was right, right now, it wasn't the _'what if's_ anymore. It wasn't her imagining about Ronnie being back, it was the fact that apparently he was never really gone, and it broke her heart even more when her brain came to realization... That Ronnie had been out there this whole time, alone, probably confused... And becoming someone, or_ something_ else, than who he once were. It was selfish of her, she knew, but she just didn't think she could take another heart-break... For having silly hopes about being able to somehow fix him, only to then find out it wasn't possible. It would just hurt too bad. It would just ache so _terribly_ bad.

"He told me to not look for him... You would think the least I can do is to honor his request? He didn't ask for any of this to happen to him... Maybe he just needed to sort things ou..."

"The door is that way." Hartley cut in coldly. He restrained himself from yelling at her something like _'Do you even hear yourself, woman? How ridiculous you sound? It had been over a year, Ronnie had all the time and space to sort things out! And obviously it wasn't working!'_ No, yelling wouldn't do; right now, Dr. Caitlin Snow wasn't the strong-willed woman Hartley had always known, she was a little girl in an emotional mess. He didn't do well with people in an emotional mess; no, Hartley Rathaway _made people go into_ emotional mess, not _dealing_ with them. This was untested waters, and he was not comfortable with it at all.

Caitlin looked up, confused as ever.

"For once, I am in complete agreement with _Cisquito_; what do _you_ think you are doing? This isn't moving on, this is _pretending_ to move on. Whether you like it or not, Ronnie _is_ out there, no matter how hard you tried to ignore or pretend otherwise. I would have never associated you with the word 'denial', but this? _This_ is truly pathetic. Until you get over your self-pitying, I think this conversation is over."

She just stared at him; there it was, the infamous Hartley-Bluntness. It was like a bitter medicine, but one she needed to take in order to get better.

"Ronnie needs help, be it from me, you, Cisco, or _I don't know_, the Flash, since he loves helping people _so_ much; Ronnie Raymond needs help. Period. When you get your head straight, you know where to find me, but don't say I didn't warn you: _don't make me wait too long_."

Caitlin studied the young Rathaway... There was something about how he phrased it... Like he was taking actions soon, but how could he, when he was stuck in this makeshift cell?

"... I just wished I could believe you." Despite of what they had talked about, this did hold some grain of truths... Caitlin did not know if she _should_ trust Hartley, so she didn't; not yet, not completely.

"You and I both."

"I'm sorry."

"... I'm sorry, too." And Hartley meant it. Sometimes he would wonder... Had he not faced Harrison Wells like the way he did, had he gone to someone else, multiple someone else... to convince them that the accelerator had a high chance to malfunction... Would any of them have believed him? The answer was quite simple, really; his spectacular personality and social skills had ruined that possibility from the start. BUT, that was all water under the bridge, hence why he was trying to make a change.

"I hope someday you will be able to have faith in me."

"Guess only time will tell then." Caitlin quoted him from one of their previous talks.

"Guess so." Hartley quoted her in response.

* * *

Caitlin had the entire night to think about her conversation with Hartley; she knew she was just running away from the problem; she knew she was only avoiding to do anything more about the situation because she was _afraid_ of getting hurt, she was afraid of feeling what was worse than bad. And she really did know it was selfish. But... she was just human.

And, just what she needed to distract herself from those depressing thoughts (aka running away from the problem, again), she was told the next day in the early morning that evidently, another metahuman incident took place the night before (possibly right around the time she was having the serious talk with Pied Piper); this time involving jail-breaking and teleporting. She told herself (more like lied to herself, again) that the case was more important and she needed to just focus on _that_; she even felt a tiny glee when she came up with the name 'Peek-a-Boo.'

Then, as day progressed into night, as Barry suggested hitting the bars himself to see if he could get some intell... Caitlin told herself (okay, the advice given to her the past day was true), in order to move on, one had to actually do 'the moving on.' Even if it wasn't the best decision (from BOTH Cisco and Hartley's point of views anyway), she was well aware that she would never stop fantasizing the option until she acted on it for once. Caitlin told herself, that this would be the last time she lied to herself, but she _had_ to know for sure, how it would feel like to, for the lack of better words, move on.

So she tried. And she did enjoy the night, she learned a few things: she learned that Barry could sing like a pro; she learned that she really wasn't much of a drinker (and the statement was putting it mildly). She had fun, lots of it, but... most importantly, she learned... She just couldn't lie to herself anymore... As pleasant as the night was, Caitlin was afraid that... She might never be as happy as she once was, not without Ronnie, not without _her_ Ronnie. No, it wasn't like her life was doomed from now on, in fact, comparing to half a year ago, she definitely felt more content and that she was doing something meaningful. She was no longer a walking shell, one that busied herself checking over a comatosed person just to wash away the sorrow she constantly felt; she actually enjoyed what she was doing, and she truly believed what she was doing was for the good. But Ronnie? Oh, Ronnie... This was just one of those things... When one had their best thing in their lives, they tend to hold on tight and not let go, or if they did, they sure as hell would want it back. And... That was where Caitlin was... She wasn't _unhappy_ per se, but she wanted the best thing in her life, well, back in her life.

* * *

Dr. Caitlin Snow woke up the day after the karaoke night with a maddening headache, only to learn from Cisco that apparently she made Hartley wait too long, and true to her intuition two nights ago, he had taken action and was now gone to who-knows-where.

She also felt like a super poor friend for not at least noticing how much guilt Cisco was carrying all this time.

**_'I'm so sorry.'_**

The sentence broke the scale Caitlin had for feeling bad. Her heart cried a little for her friend.

Caitlin could never be mad at him, not for this. It was not his fault for doing the right thing... as for letting Hartley getting away? Well, Caitlin secretly knew that, it was really only a matter of time for _that_ to happen... It was very likely that she would have been the one setting the Piper free had Cisco not beaten her to it.

Then crisis happened, and crisis ended. Team Flash once again successfully added a new inmate to the Pipeline.

**_'You know the crazy thing is? I still love him.'_**

She felt for the girl... Shawna... In this madness, even when there was only so mere of a chance for her to reunite with _her_ Ronnie, Caitlin was still... Crazy for her fiancé; she really could not fake it any longer.

The funny thing was, although she no longer could kid herself (and yes, she knew this sentence or its variation was getting a bit old now), seeing Barry taking _the_ step to move on from Iris, and _actually_ looking happy and accepting about it; she decided it wouldn't do harm to lie _to him_. Just a little white lie, to give him another push to pursue _his_ happiness, be it from this chic girl from the bar, or the next lucky one. Caitlin spew out some crap (literally, she was kicking herself inside for not being able to come up with something better) about Ronnie merging with Professor Stein meant that her fiancé was no longer alive; for a second, Barry looked like he had seen through the ludicrousy, but thankfully he let it slide and agreed with the rest of her statement.

As Barry walked away, Caitlin felt _good_ and her smile was a true one. No more running. Or delaying the inevitable. It was time to get back on her feet, give it her best to mend the broken family... The one _her_ Ronnie had been a part of. She would do it in time.

(In the back of her head, she slightly prayed for the young Rathaway to not do something as reckless as what landed him in their cell. She hoped that whatever it was that Hartley was trying to achieve, _bless him_, that he would find his way, and hopefully not an awful one.)

Later that afternoon found Cisco with a serious expression looking fiercely at his tablet. Caitlin wasn't sure if she should keep up the pretense (her giving up on Ronnie) in front of him; Barry, yeah, she already did, and she had the feeling it was best for her to do the same with Dr. Wells... But Cisco... Like he said so himself, he had all the reasons for wanting to figure out what had transpired. Deciding to observe before making a move, Dr. Caitlin Snow soundlessly approached him and peered over his shoulder to make out what he was reading, only to find out it wasn't about F.I.R.E.S.T.O.R.M. at all.

"Looking up Thai restaurants? I guess eating tacos all the time finally made you sick?" She teased, but as soon as the words left her mouth, Cisco stiffened, and then sighed.

"Tacos are fine, and I don't want Thai food." He put the tablet aside and turned to face her, a gloomy and resigned pout on his face.

Feeling that there was more to it, Caitlin guided him to sit down face-to-face and waited patiently for him to continue.

Continue he did, Cisco told her the full story of what happened with Hartley and him, not the _'he's gone; I let him out'_ short version. Reaching to the part about _the fight_, Caitlin's eyebrows raised so high that she could feel the creases on her forehead (and she would later have to use extra facial product because of this... age was not a friend to women), she just found it very hard to believe that Hartley and Cisco had fought physically... They were always like cats and dogs, always going at each other, having _verbal_ spars... But what real harm could the two most brilliant nerds of S.T.A.R. Labs possibly do to each other, _physically_?

"What?" Cisco finally noticed the incredulous look on Caitlin's face.

"I... can't get the image out of my head, one of an American Cocker Spaniel puppy and a pug fighting." Cats and dogs they might have acted, but if it were a dog, _scratch that_, puppy fight, this would be it. Caitlin mentally _awwwwed_ at the picture she conjured.

"What, you don't think we can brawl?" He sounded _so_ offended.

"From the way you guys dress and act, can you blame me?" _Eye-rolls for you, sir_. They were both brains, not brawn.

"Hey, I have an older brother, _of course_ I know how to hold my own ground! For Hartley, his parents would be _brain-dead_ if they hadn't made him take some sort of self-defense class. Bodyguards can only do so much, but a kid from a rich family is always an obvious kidnapping choice... I mean, the kidnappers probably won't be receiving a single dime if they choose to target Hartley _now_, disowned by the Rathaways and all, but... Okay why is this relevant?"

Caitlin found it very amusing that he would defend Hartley's self-preservation skills... Though she had a feeling it was more like defending _their fight_ and how legit it was, but she still doubted it was as _epic_ as he made it out to be. _Come on_, he said Hartley had his hands cuffed! But owells, moving on.

"You rigged his earpiece?"

Cisco looked ashamed but replied nonetheless.

"It would be foolish not to, wouldn't it? And I was right, he did try to make a run for it; yo, I mean, I would have been hella suspicious if he _hadn't tried_."

"I know it was immoral and all, but he was our only lead to Ronnie; I couldn't let him get away! But...in the end he still did... I messed up again." Feeling super self-conscious, Cisco rambled, only to feel much worse as he went on.

"Hey, none of that. Remember? Not your fault." She squeezed his hand. "I know you don't torture people for fun... I mean, I'm pretty sure you do fancy strangling Hartley, but not hurting him permanently... It was a last resort, right? Like you said, you couldn't let him on the loose, and once he was again compromised, you turned off the device. I'm not saying it wasn't cruel, but it was efficient for the time being and a logical thing to do. Think, if Dr. Wells were the Big Bad, wouldn't we naturally go for fixing his wheel-chair?" They both chuckled, because, with no disrespect, Dr. Wells would be pretty much restricted without the access of his wheel-chair, no? _Oh, little did they know, in the coming weeks, they would find out just how wrong they were_.

* * *

"Anyways, um... What does all this have to do with Thai food?"

Cisco looked uncomfortable and embarrassed.

"I know this is ridiculous, I really do, but Hartley did mention he had the biggest craving for Thai food... I just thought... Look, I know it'd be just _too easy_ if we actually caught him in a Thai restaurant... and I started thinking maybe this is reverse psychology, like he _knew_ I would go for it and like, I don't know, plant a bomb at the place he _knew_ I would pick... but then maybe it is _the reverse of_ reverse psychology, like he knew I would know it was too obvious of a clue, so I wouldn't go for it at all because he knew I'm smart just that it physically hurts him to admit it... What?"

Caitlin was grinning wildly and shaking her head, and even laughed out loud a little bit.

Because.

_Awwwww._

_Cisco was trying SO hard to make it right._

"First off, worst idea to put Hartley and _reverse psychology_ in the same thought process. It'd drive you crazy."

"I think Hartley alone is capable of driving me nuts, but I get what you're saying." He sighed.

"Right, and don't forget, Hartley's not evil."

"I must have _missed_ that memo." Cisco muttered under his breath.

_Oh, no; not Cisco, too?_ Caitlin remembered the extended talk she had with Barry... _Come to think of it, her work that night may all be undone because of Hartley's escape! Just wonderful._

"Hey, throwing a bunch of cars _with people in them_ off of a highway doesn't convince me about him not being evil, in fact, it does the exact opposite job."

"You _know_ he did that because he knew the Flash would manage to save them all..."

"Oh, _do I_, now?"

"It was all a distraction, the people, the cars, they weren't the point; the point was to catch the Flash off guard."

"_I think_ you are trying too hard to come up with a reason for him to _not_ be evil. Like you said, the people in the cars didn't matter, not to him anyways, so how can you argue that he might give a fuck if they died, maybe he really doesn't!"

"I think _you_ are trying too hard, _forcing yourself into thinking him as evil_. Just listen to yourself! How can you say Hartley wouldn't care? If he didn't care about people, he wouldn't have warned Dr. Wells about the accelerator, going against someone he had admired and trusted, and look what _that_ had got him in return!"

Cisco frowned, taking his time to digest every word Caitlin had just said. Caitlin knew she managed to knock some sense back to him; she wasn't justifying what Hartley did, on no circumstances could one make what he did as something righteous; but using it to accuse him of being uncaring was uncalled for and illogical. The one person who sort of fitted this description, sadly, was Dr. Wells; Caitlin knew it, Cisco knew it... They could practically hear the words _collateral damage_ coming out of their boss's mouth.

"_Anyways_, just scrap the bomb idea, alright? He would have to assume that you are letting the Flash in on this, _which you aren't_, so that the Flash could rush _in_ to get everyone _out_ on time, that's just too much work, besides, explosives just seems like poor taste for Hartley." Caitlin decided to just push the 'evil-or-not' debate to the side.

"Fine, maybe not a bomb to blow up the whole restaurant, _what about something subtle_, like bribing someone to poison my food or my drink... I bet it won't be those that kills me immediately, but the kind that does it slowly and painfully... "

This time Dr. Caitlin Snow snorted, then laughed shamelessly.

"Just stop right there, Cisco." She had to pause for a few seconds because this was beyond comical. "Now you're just paranoid for no reason. Why would Hartley want to kill you?"

"Because he _hates_ me."

"Aww, _Cisco_, Hartley doesn't hate you."

"_Now_ you're just barking mad." _That_ sobered Caitlin when she realized Cisco was being serious: he really, genuinely, thought the young Rathaway hated him.

Caitlin rubbed her forehead with her hand. The past was catching up. The one gigantic misunderstanding no one bothered to sort out was now showing its consequences.

"Cisco, I honestly think you are just feeling guilty over hurting Hartley with his earpiece, and _that_ makes you think he would want to take some revenge; but didn't you say he already told you you guys were even? Like right before he got away? You're overthinking this, Cisco." She took both of his hands and held them.

"And no, I'm not crazy. Look, I never said anything because I didn't feel like it was my place to do so, but seriously, Cisco, Hartley _so does not_ hate you."

"... What are you on about? He was always out to get me!"

"He may hate your guts, but he most definitely does not hate you _as a person_, or hate you as in want-you-dead, hate you, _because where would all the fun be?_ Okay, that came out wrong." She tried to explained more. "Cisco, does Hartley make you feel incompetent? Like you have to prove yourself?"

"Duh! Whatever I did or said, he always found something to pick on, like I was always wrong or not good enough!"

"See, that's why this is messed up. Cisco, you _are_ good enough. You are so much better than _just good enough_. It was never about _one-upping_ you. My dear friend, if Hartley didn't think you as a worthy opponent, he wouldn't have wasted his time and breath on you. For all I know, Hartley saw, if not most, half of the people in S.T.A.R. Labs as Neanderthals; that's saying something considering S.T.A.R. Labs _was_ the best of the best. His intelligence was on a complete different level, but then you came along, recruited and praised by the legendary Dr. Harrison Wells himself."

"And what, I threatened him so much that he had to try and humiliate me whenever he got the chance?"

"Not exactly. Cisco, Hartley made the typical mistake of judging a book by its cover. Literally, he judged you too quick based on what you were wearing, and yes, I remember because it was rather hard to forget about someone wearing a statement-T on their first day to work. He tried to test you right away but you exceeded his expectation. You and I both know besides wit, Hartley had the most pride; there was simply no way he was going to turn around and admit he was wrong, or apologizing for trying to embarrass you. I intervened because I felt you guys seemingly already had a bad start." She looked at him full on, willing him to understand she was completely serious about this.

"I meant it when I said Hartley had met his opponent; he knew it and acknowledged it, too. He was impressed and it showed. I didn't want his stubbornness to make things uglier than it had to be, especially not when he actually looked like he was interested, I mean, NO, not romantically interested, but more like intrigued? I thought... I actually thought there was a chance you guys would become friends. I have no idea what went wrong after I left, did he immediately start belittling you or something?"

"... No, he just told me I would only last for a week, _max_." He said, absentmindedly, looking dumbfounded by what he just heard.

**_FIN?_**


End file.
